Is God Racist?

Definition of RACISM

1: a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.

The bible talks about different races and often it has been twisted to try to subject people from other nationalities/races/ethnicity as subservient to a ruling or majority class of people. We frequently see it when Caucasian people (who immigrated to the US from Europe) abuse people from other nations, most obvious during slavery but in spite of the abolishment of slavery racism still exists and targets all non white (caucasian) people in the country.

Its really bothersome when i see it being done by people who claim to be Christians, makes me wonder if they think Jesus is white. I think they never considered that on judgement day they will have to stand before the Jewish Messiah and explain why they dominated/abused/scorned/thought they were better than non-white people. Jesus was born the Son of David and returns to earth as The Lion of The Tribe of Judah, still Jewish.

As author Michelle Van Loon pointed out recently in her book “Downsizing, letting go of Evangelicism’s Nonessentials” because of doctrines like replacement theology, many gentiles seem to think that if Jews get saved they can then be grafted into a gentile olive tree. As Van Loon described so well, thats the opposite of what the Lord said through the Apostle Paul in the new testament. “Paul’s masterful metaphor describing Jesus’ family tree of faith in Romans 11 highlighted the gracious way in which God had ingrafted gentiles through faith into His covenant with the Jewish people. He noted that some of the natural-born branches of this olive tree had been broken off, and wild olive branches representing the gentiles had been grafted onto the tree in their place. ( Romans 11:17) He warned the ingrafted gentiles not to allow pride to blind them to the reality that God could return those branches he’d removed back to their home on the olive tree (Romans 11:18-21) -Michelle Van Loon, pg 56, “Downsizing, letting go of Evangelicism’s Nonessentials” © 2025 Eerdmans Publishing Co.

Racism is also an issue in non-caucasian majority nations. For example the People’s Republic of China has committed a series of ongoing human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim minorities, many Arab Muslim majority countries have strict laws about non-muslims being allowed to live in their countries, similar racial tensions exist in India, Pakistan, Asia, probably every country deals with racism in one fashion or another.

When I attended church in my early 20’s & 30’s i attended almost exclusively white churches. This was not by choice but because of the area I lived in, there were few if any people of other races/nationalities in the rural towns i grew up in, until we had labor shortages in agriculture and began bussing farm workers in from Mexico. Temporary workers who didn’t attend churches much except when a Catholic church occasionally offered mass in Spanish. I was very interested in what the bible had to say about nationalities and wanted to know if- as i had heard frequently – we white people were somehow now God’s chosen people.

Some of what I read in the bible about that showed me how wrong it was~

For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?   1 Cor 4:7

But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.   Romans 14:10-11

Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.  Matt 7:1-2

Jesus is of the tribe of Judah:

For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Judah…    Heb 7:14

When Jesus came to earth He was so obviously Jewish that people knew it, the Samaritan woman knew He was Jewish:

There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.  John 4:7-9

and the blind man called Him Son of David:

And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.  Mark 10:47

(King David was an Israelite from Bethlehem 1 Sam. 16:1-4)

Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself…   Romans 2:1

Jesus is the Light of the whole world, not just of one race or nationality:

 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. 1 John 2:1-2

What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:   Romans 3:9-10

There is only one that never sinned, the man Christ Jesus.

For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.   Heb 4:15

For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.   Gal 3:27-28

We are instructed not to look at the outward appearance like what color a persons skin is but to look at people’s hearts instead.

But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.  1 Sam 16:7

In the old testament there is a scripture about not marrying people of different races, but it was not because of the persons race, it was because of the sins of the other countries at that time.

When the Lord thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou; And when the Lord thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them: Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.  Deut 7:1-3 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods… Deut 7:4

It wasn’t because of the color of their skin…

But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. Matt 15:9

…this is why:

For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods… Deut 7:4

Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice; 16 And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods.   Ex 34:15-16

The nations that they had come to did not serve God, they would corrupt the children of Israel by their sins. Jesus came to save people of all races & nations. The reason the Lord wrote that in the old testament was so that the Isrealites would not be drawn into the other country’s sins. Even  now Christians have a similar warning when getting married to someone that is out of the will of the Lord, or unsaved, not because of the race or color of the person, but because of the sins they are involved in. We can’t judge people by their nationality anymore, there are Christians in every ethnicity.

…she is at liberty to be married to whom she will; only in the Lord.  1 Cor 7:39

But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.   1 Cor 10:20

Israel is still God’s chosen people,  but we do not judge salvation by nationality:

Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.  John 7:24

Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.  Col 3:11

A prophecy about Jesus was this-

And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor…  Isaiah 11:3-4

The old testament has recorded the history of the descendants of Abram and the nation of Israel~

the story of Ruth and Naomi includes that the Moabite woman Ruth married Naomi’s son who was Jewish. When he died Ruth married a Jewish man named Boaz.

And Elimelech Naomi’s husband died; and she was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelled there about ten years.  Ruth 1:3-4

So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bare a son.  Ruth 4:13

… and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.  Ruth 4:17

A Moabite woman is mother to the man Obed who is in the lineage of Jesus. That is an example of the Lord using an interracial marriage in the line that He brought His Son from.

queen Esther married a man of another nationality:

Now it came to pass in the days of Ahasuerus, (this is Ahasuerus which reigned, from India even unto Ethiopia, over an hundred and seven and twenty provinces:) Esth 1:1  And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.   Esther 2:17

Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? If any man trust to himself that he is Christ’s, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ’s, even so are we Christ’s.    2 Cor

10:7

Moses’ wife was a Midianite:

Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian…  Ex 3:1

Rahab was from Jericho:

And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house: for they be come to search out all the country.   Josh 2:3

And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father’s household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.   Josh 6:25

By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.  Heb 11:31

And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.   Romans 9:26

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.   John 13:20

if He sends a disciple from another nationality and we don’t receive them, then we don’t receive Jesus.

Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.    Matt 23:34-36

the gospel of Jesus’ salvation and adoption of us as children of God is for all nations:

And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. Luke 24:46-47

For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.   Matt 23:39

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:  Acts 3:19-20

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.   Romans 10:9-13

Anti-semitism is becoming openly prevelant again, even here in the US. Some seem to think that christianity is a western religion but the 12 disciples were Jewish. It is beyond my comprehension but some “churches” here have openly hated Jewish people. As far as I can tell their stance is that the Jews killed Jesus. Not all the Jewish nation nor all the pharisees and scribes consented to the trial and death of Jesus. Besides that it is our sins that put Jesus on the cross to die just as much as anyone elses. I dont believe a real follower of Jesus would blame Jews for Jesus’ dying on the cross but instead a true follower of Jesus would confess that it was their own sins that put Jesus on the cross.

Furthermore who did Jesus say “Father forgive them…” about? Wasn’t He praying that about the ones that crucified Him? Are we going to condemn those Jesus already forgave? You cannot be a real disciple of Jesus and hate Jewish people.

Several years ago I read a wonderful book written by Dudley Hall titled “Grace Works” in it there is a chapter called ‘the pharisee in me’ It was a great reminder that when we read things about the Pharisees in the bible it was referring to a group of people acting a certain way at a certain time, not for us to hate all people in the sect of pharisees. We all have tendencies to do the same things, and yes, like Peter we also are ALL capable of denying the Lord Himself to save our own skins without His power helping us stay faithful.

He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes. 1 John 2:9-11

The apostle Paul, who is Jewish, wrote a section in the book of Romans concerning Israel that explains that just because in part blindness has happened to the Israelite’s pertaining to the Messiah Jesus, God has not cast off his people.  Just because some of the branches were broken off so that gentiles could be grafted in it says to be not highminded but fear, for if God didn’t spare those that stayed in unbelief he won’t spare us either. He also speaks of God’s ability to graft them back into the vine.

I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin. God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew….  Romans 11:1-2

I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy. Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness? For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office: If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them. For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead? For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in. Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee. Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off. And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again. For if thou wert cut out of the olive tree which is wild by nature, and wert graffed contrary to nature into a good olive tree: how much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graffed into their own olive tree? For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. Romans 11:11-27

For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all. Romans 11:30-32

I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, And give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. Isaiah 62:6-7